


Ephemeral Summer

by SongsOfAdelaide



Series: Lycoris Spectrum [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Free Verse, M/M, Mutual Pining, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-14
Updated: 2020-08-14
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:09:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,103
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25886347
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SongsOfAdelaide/pseuds/SongsOfAdelaide
Summary: 𝑨𝒏 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝑩𝒆𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒇𝒖𝒍 𝑪𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒔. Top athlete Kageyama Tobio wondered if it was possible to fall in love with someone he hasn't met. 𝘈𝘩, but they 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 met before. They only have yet to remember.All those dreams make sense now.
Relationships: Kageyama Tobio & Tsukishima Kei, Kageyama Tobio/Tsukishima Kei
Series: Lycoris Spectrum [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1824307
Comments: 4
Kudos: 87





	Ephemeral Summer

**Ephemeral Summer**

* * *

— _what did the stars say?_ —

_"No need to look at me that way, your highness. I'm probably going to laugh if I find you with tears in your eyes again."_

_"Ah, can't you stay quiet for just one second? The healers are trying to—"_

_"You and I will surely meet again. That's simply how it is."_

_"No force in this world can keep me from finding you. I'll look for you everywhere, I—"_

* * *

𝚃𝚘𝚍𝚊𝚢 𝟾:𝟸𝟻 𝙰𝙼

𝙺𝚊𝚐𝚎𝚢𝚊𝚖𝚊 𝙺𝚊𝚣𝚞𝚢𝚘: 𝚆𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚋𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚑𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚠𝚎𝚎𝚔? 𝙸𝚝 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚋𝚎 𝚐𝚘𝚘𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚊 𝚋𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚔 𝚊𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝚜𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚘𝚗.  
𝙺𝚊𝚐𝚎𝚢𝚊𝚖𝚊 𝚃𝚘𝚋𝚒𝚘: 𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍𝚜 𝚐𝚘𝚘𝚍. 𝙸'𝚕𝚕 𝚋𝚎 𝚑𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚜𝚘𝚘𝚗. 

* * *

_22 August 20XX, Sendai City, Miyagi-ken_

Coming home to Sendai meant meeting his old self again. 

On days when his grandfather would urge him to come home for the off-season, the madly popular and professional V.League player Kageyama Tobio often found himself dreaming rather vividly about a lifetime so different from the one he's currently living in. The dreams were short and bittersweet and often left him in a daze when morning comes. 

He would tell his grandfather about those dreams over warm cups of coffee, whereas he would be perpetually baffled by the visions of high ceilings, a castle made of the darkest solid matter possible and it was filled with grandiose silver furnishings. His recollections were sparse but there were certain things he could never forget— a sapphire the size of a child's fist pinned neatly over his chest, Kindaichi and Kunimi and how the three of them bonded over _horses_ , of all things, but there was also Oikawa-san in clothing the same colour as the sea when it's closest to the shore and how he was often kept in line by Iwaizumi-san— but that wasn't really new to him at all. _Heck , _even Matsukawa-san and Hanamaki-san were there, and all of them... They all looked up to him as—

* * *

— _long live_ —

_"It will be terribly lonely up there, but I think you'll do better than I ever did, little brother."_

_"Wait, big brother Tooru! I—"_

_**"** _ **_Long live the king!"_**

* * *

 _Rewinds,_ as people call it, were dreams from a person's past life. Every dream was a puzzle piece— clues alluding to the kind of life he lived before this one right now. Tobio had a myriad of questions that needed answering when he first started dreaming in reverse— _Who was he in his past life? What kind of person was he?_

The rewinds started rather early for him— _too early—_ and even his grandfather thought so. They occur when people are in close proximity of someone they had a connection with in their past life. Tobio's first rewind shocked him awake ahead of his first day of junior high school at Kitagawa Daiichi. He had already met them in his dreams— _a lifetime ago—_ particularly the hazel-eyed brunet who greeted him as he applied and tried out for the school volleyball club. 

_"Oh, there you are Tobio-chan,"_ the older boy's smile was warm and inviting. _"We've been expecting you."_

Most of his questions had already been answered. The friends he kept close to him were the ones his past life cherished as well. He still had a few more on his mind, though. But people always dreamt in sequences and he was no different. He was sure that whatever remained unclear to him would be clarified soon enough. 

* * *

— _we all have a hunger_ —

_"May our fighting be long and our friendship even longer when we see each other again, Kageyama!"_

_"I guess a little friendly combat wouldn't hurt every once in a while, Hinata."_

* * *

One of the oddest rewinds Tobio had involved the red-headed middle blocker from a rising Miyagi powerhouse high school. They only came in contact on the volleyball court once but there was a great unspoken animosity between them that never seemed to die out. He thought Karasuno had a skilled set of players, but his pride as an esteemed player from Aoba Johsai would never allow him to admit anything contrary to their paradigm.

Tobio knew where the animosity originated and he was sure the redhead did as well. _It wasn't theirs—_ but it was from their past selves trying to revive it in the present. 

Karasuno had a unique line-up of starting players, but what caught everyone's attention was the blocking combo of their numbers ten and twelve. The redhead and his teammate, the one with stars on his face, were truly a force to be reckoned with. _Like a sword and a shield._ There could only be one explanation as to why they worked so well together. 

_Ah, what luck._ The redhead's spike whizzed past his defence, surprising him and the rest of his team on the court. He wasn't one for bringing any petty quarrelling to the game, but he figured it wouldn't hurt to have a little trip down memory lane, a tiny peek to quell their bloodlust. 

Both Tobio and Hinata Shouyou knew that they will endlessly hunger for their combat, but it wasn't a craving they needed to answer to anymore. 

They were good friends when they meet again at the All Japan Youth Training Camp in Tokyo, where they constantly chattered about their past selves and their present achievements.

_"You're familiar with our Suga-san, right? He and the Grand King used to be rivals as well, and I mean, like, from a lifetime ago."_

_"Oikawa-san told me they were friends back then as well."_

Tobio recognised the top setter Miya Atsumu as someone valuable from Shouyou's past life when he approached them. _"You're Hinata's... Ah, you two are together, right?"_

The blond setter grinned as he laced his fingers into the middle blocker's smaller hands. _"Have you met yers, Tobio-kun? The person of your destiny or whatever they call this... lovers thing."_

 _"Soulmate, Atsumu-san,"_ the redhead laughed as he nudged the taller guy beside him. _"Does it really sound that cheesy to you?"_

Cheesy as it sounded, Tobio was rather expectant of it. He was honestly more envious than curious at the thought of meeting his _soulmate,_ especially when he first heard of it from Oikawa-san and Iwaizumi-san. The concept of a kindred spirit that was bound to him was lost to him at first, but it quickly made sense to him when he observed the subtle ease and seamlessness of the pair's relationship with each other. At the back of his mind, he wondered— _Where could they be, though? Does he even have one of those?_ But such thoughts were pretty useless now since he hasn't dreamt of anything significant recently. 

_"How did you two know? How will you know if they're... If they're the one?"_

Shouyou and Atsumu exchanged looks after hearing the inquiry. 

_"You'll just know, Kageyama. Ah, that was a stupid explanation, but there really is no explaining this."_

_"It's not gonna be some gravity-defying revelation, if that's what yer hoping for, Tobio-kun. It could be as simple as walking into a room and seeing them and then everything suddenly clicks."_

Oikawa-san told him that he shouldn't stress over it and that his soul would know more than anyone or anything else. Rewinds as important as those can't be forced even if he slept for days, so he would really have to wait. Patience wasn't his strongest virtue, but there wasn't much he could do if it wasn't their time to meet yet. 

So Tobio bided his time and grew himself into the kind of athlete he wanted to be— a household name and a prized player that even Japan prided itself in. He could go on and on at this. And while he had taken on the world stage countless times, he could attest to the fact that there really was no place like home. 

* * *

— _the stars said yes_ —

_"What if you don't remember me in the future?"_

_"Are you kidding me? I would have such a hard time forgetting such a beautiful face like yours, Kei."_

* * *

𝚃𝚘𝚍𝚊𝚢 𝟽:𝟺𝟿 𝙰𝙼

𝙷𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚊 𝚂𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚢𝚘𝚞: 𝚃𝚜𝚞𝚔𝚒𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚖𝚊! 𝙸 𝚒𝚗𝚟𝚒𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚊 𝚏𝚎𝚠 𝚏𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚊𝚏𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚗𝚘𝚘𝚗. 𝙸 𝚑𝚘𝚙𝚎 𝚒𝚝 𝚠𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚋𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚢 𝚝𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚢𝚘𝚞.   
𝚃𝚜𝚞𝚔𝚒𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚖𝚊 𝙺𝚎𝚒: 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚖𝚢 𝚍𝚘𝚞𝚋𝚝𝚜 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚍𝚎𝚏𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚘𝚏 𝚏𝚎𝚠.  
𝙷𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚊 𝚂𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚢𝚘𝚞: 𝙸𝚝'𝚜 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚖𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰𝚝𝚜𝚞𝚖𝚞-𝚜𝚊𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚈𝚊𝚖𝚊𝚐𝚞𝚌𝚑𝚒 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚈𝚊𝚌𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙺𝚎𝚗𝚖𝚊 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙺𝚞𝚛𝚘𝚘-𝚜𝚊𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙱𝚘𝚔𝚞𝚝𝚘-𝚜𝚊𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰𝚔𝚊𝚊𝚜𝚑𝚒-𝚜𝚊𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚘𝚗𝚎!  
𝚃𝚜𝚞𝚔𝚒𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚖𝚊 𝙺𝚎𝚒: 𝙹𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚑𝚘𝚠 𝚋𝚊𝚍 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚝 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐? 𝚃𝚑𝚊𝚝'𝚜 𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚍𝚕𝚢 𝚊 𝚏𝚎𝚠! 𝙰𝚗𝚍 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 "𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚘𝚗𝚎"?  
𝙷𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚊 𝚂𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚢𝚘𝚞: 𝚈𝚘𝚞'𝚕𝚕 𝚜𝚎𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚜𝚎𝚎! 𝚂𝚘 𝚠𝚎'𝚕𝚕 𝚜𝚎𝚎 𝚢𝚊!

* * *

_23 August 20XX, Sendai City, Miyagi-ken_

Tsukishima Kei's rewinds were as quaint as his present life. He decided that he quite liked who he was in his past life. Everyone he cherished from his former life as a mage or magician of sorts was right there right now and he probably couldn't ask for anything more. 

_"You're a wizard, Tsukishima!"_ Shouyou jokingly told him. _"It really is true! I've seen you in my rewinds so often, you know!"_

But something about his last rewind made him tremble. In _fear?_ No, that's not it. In _anticipation?_ He doubted that as well. He woke up in a cold sweat, grasping for air and his glasses as he shot up from his bed. 

He just dreamt of Kageyama Tobio, of all people. 

The man's name was on nearly every person's mouth nowadays that he wouldn't be surprised if it was just a normal dream and not really a _rewind_. 

Kei, Shouyou and the rest of Karasuno had to learn the hard way that there was no stopping a man made for grand heights. While he never had the chance to share a court with Aoba Johsai's miracle rookie, he was just as devastated as the rest of their club when they were defeated during that most memorable Interhigh Preliminaries.

Why wasn't he able to play again? _Ah, right._ He couldn't blame Coach Ukai's decision seeing as his lungs weren't really in the best shape. He spent most of his high school playing years as a reserve player, only having taken the centre court a handful of times he immensely treasured. 

His past self may have had something to do with his weak lungs, but there was no point in holding a grudge against a version of himself that's been long gone.

It's been years since Kei had a rewind and he found it odd that he dreamt of a stranger... But Tobio didn't seem like one at all in his last dream and even called out his name so tenderly—

The gentle familiarity he was treated with in his dream somehow made his eyes water all of a sudden. Rarely did normal dreams rile him up and make him feel so strange whenever he woke up, so he had his confirmation.

It _was_ a rewind. 

_Oh, now what?_ It's not like he could contact this person and say, _hey, guess what? We were together in our past life, so maybe you wanna get together now?_ Not only was he an unknown player in 2nd Division V.League, but he was also a complete stranger to a world-class volleyball player who clearly had more important things to do—

 _No, I'm not a stranger._ He tried to shake the thoughts away. _Not to him._ Rewinds like those were pretty much shared memories, so Tobio had to _remember_ him, or at least _recognise_ him. 

As much as Kei didn't want to dwell on this sudden revelation, the odd fear of being forgotten by someone gnawed at him.

_What if Tobio doesn't remember him at all?_

* * *

Tobio woke up drenched in a cold sweat. It was nearly sunrise and the name of a person he didn't know just left his lips mere moments ago. 

_Who was that beautiful person with him back then?_ They were like fragments of memories he somehow forgot about but are now returning to him. _Gold in his arms. Amber eyes framed in long blond lashes._

"Kei—" he uttered, tears filling the corners of his eyes as he came to a realisation. 

* * *

𝚃𝚘𝚍𝚊𝚢 𝟽:𝟻𝟻 𝙰𝙼

𝙷𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚊 𝚂𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚢𝚘𝚞: 𝙾𝚒, 𝚋𝚊𝚔𝚊𝚐𝚎𝚢𝚊𝚖𝚊! 𝙳𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚐𝚎𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚊𝚏𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚗𝚘𝚘𝚗! 𝚂𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚊𝚒 𝙲𝚒𝚝𝚢 𝙼𝚞𝚜𝚎𝚞𝚖.  
𝙺𝚊𝚐𝚎𝚢𝚊𝚖𝚊 𝚃𝚘𝚋𝚒𝚘: 𝚈𝚎𝚊𝚑, 𝚢𝚎𝚊𝚑. 𝙸'𝚕𝚕 𝚋𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎.   
𝙷𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚊 𝚂𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚢𝚘𝚞: '𝙲𝚘𝚞𝚛𝚜𝚎 𝚢𝚊 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕! 𝙸𝚝'𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚢𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚋𝚎𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚘 𝚍𝚘, 𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝?  
𝙺𝚊𝚐𝚎𝚢𝚊𝚖𝚊 𝚃𝚘𝚋𝚒𝚘: 𝙳𝚘 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚎 𝚖𝚢 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚍?  
𝙷𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚊 𝚂𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚢𝚘𝚞: 𝙲'𝚖𝚘𝚗 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚋𝚎 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝! 𝙸'𝚖 𝚜𝚞𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞'𝚛𝚎 𝚐𝚘𝚗𝚗𝚊 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚊 𝚋𝚕𝚊𝚜𝚝 𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚛!

* * *

As promised, they all met at the Sendai City Museum this afternoon. 

"Oh! Kageyama made it today!" Shouyou greeted Tobio with a wave. The redhead was surrounded by familiar faces that his past self knew, but they would need new introductions now. 

Tobio was in a long navy blue overcoat and dark chinos that emphasised his height even more. 

"Hello, Hinata," he greeted Shouyou rather amicably. The redhead wore a maroon overcoat similar to that which his lover— _soulmate_ — Atsumu wore. He proceeded to introduce everyone to Tobio, the strange familiarity somewhat comforting. His past self may have known them before, but he was seeing them with new eyes. 

"Ah, Hinata, I need to ask you something," Tobio started. "It's about—"

"Ah, the doors are opening! Let's talk later, Kageyama!" 

"I'm pretty excited to see that new exhibition," said Yachi, the blonde woman they affectionately call Yacchan. She and Karasuno's 12, Yamaguchi, were in matching green sweaters. 

Tobio trailed the group as they entered the building and had security checks conducted. He was quickly left alone when everyone took separate steps and made their way to look at whatever caught their eye. 

They were in the contemporary arts section of the museum, but Tobio found himself roaming around and taking in whatever he laid his eyes on.

He somehow realised that he wasn't in the same section anymore when the paintings that hung on the muted blue walls started looking realistic. _Ah,_ well. Art was art and he appreciated an afternoon outside rather than mulling around at home and upsetting his grandfather _and_ his older sister with his damp outlook after he had told them that his own soulmate may not remember him. 

Tobio didn't know much about art, but he sure as hell appreciated it. To think that there were people talented enough to bring to life whatever it was they imagined, be it through their paintings or sculptures or other mediums he couldn't elaborate on further. Artists would be remembered forever for their work and it was something they deserved, even if they were already dead. 

A certain centrepiece caught his eyes so hard that he simply had to approach it. The piece was as big as a normal-sized window and was framed in elegantly carved dark wood that looked just as aged as the portrait. 

_Beautiful Creatures,_ read the title of the painting. It wasn't the finest work of art in the museum, but it spoke volumes to him, especially when he read its short description. The odd painting was a hobby piece by a young royal from the days of old and was done with very little care of what people would think about it. _Painted by King ⬛'s older brother, Prince ⬛._

His eyes were playing tricks on him and he could tell that it was due to his past self's interference. He didn't pay any more mind to the garbled names of the people on the description and continued reading.

— _a young king and his lover, a wizard from a foreign country—_

He raised his eyes to the painting— it was a raven-haired figure in deep blue clothing, his arms gently around a golden-haired man in a white cloak, blue roses in his slender hands. The more he stared at it, the _realer_ it felt and the more familiar it became to him.

 _Gold in his arms._ Like in his dreams. 

He couldn't tear his eyes away, so he stood petrified before the strange painting, warm tears streaming down his chiselled face as he took in every detail laid bare to him. 

"Are you all right?" A man's voice called out to him, shocking him back to reality. 

"Ah, yeah. I'm all right," Tobio replied, bringing his coat sleeve to his face. He still had his eyes on the painting, not wanting to look away even for a moment. "Do you ever get the feeling that a piece of art is talking to you?" 

"A lot of people experience rewind-like moments whenever they visit the museum. The way their past selves find ways to connect with them through artworks and artifacts is a common phenomenon. Would you like a tissue?"

Tobio felt the stranger stand right next to him and it made him feel rather foolish. He turned to the man, who had a little tissue pack in his hands. "Thanks, I—"

A bizarre feeling washed over him the moment he laid eyes on the man who had his hand outstretched to him. His golden wavy hair and amber eyes framed in golden lashes were all too familiar to him even though he only met him now. 

The blond man had an ID around his neck which hung neatly over his white dress shirt, a single blue pen tucked in his chest pocket. He had the same mystified look on his face which quickly melted into a small knowing smile. 

Tobio felt his face heat up at that reaction. "Ah, I'm sorry. I just couldn't— I couldn't help but think that you're so—"

" _Beautiful_ , right?" The blond finished his statement, tears in his amber eyes as he felt Tobio's cold hands hold his face and pull him close. "Whoever I was back then probably heard you say it a lot—"

"You're Kei," the raven-haired man stated, his lips quivering to a smile. "The old king had so many names for you and I could go on and on, you know, but that's not important anymore."

Kei could only nod at him, a small laugh leaving his lips as he felt his forehead rest against Tobio's own. 

"You're crying. Stop crying because it's making me laugh."

"You aren't as mean as I thought you'd be."

"I think I've been mean to you enough. Even if it was already a lifetime ago."

Shouyou was quick to usher everyone out of the section when he saw the two tall figures basking in the afterglow of a first meeting the second time around. "Ah, they waited a lifetime for this, so let's give them this moment."

"I'm home, Kei. You're home." 

"Welcome home, King Tobio. Took you long enough."

All those dreams finally made sense now.

* * *

**End.**

**Author's Note:**

> The title of this piece is based on the song Ephemeral Summer by re:plus. Go give it a listen! This was originally a thread fic on my Twitter account and you can give it a read there as well. (I personally think it made more sense to read on Twitter lol). I guess I also wanted to give Beautiful Creatures a tiny conclusion in the form of a soulmate/reincarnation piece, so ta-da! This was supposed to be the last part of Lycoris Spectrum and I still have two more pieces left in limbo because... life happened lol! Anyway, this is me rambling again. I still have more Tsukikage brainrot I have yet to put on paper. Maybe after a haircut! ♡
> 
> Talk to me on Twitter/CC @quirklessbeauty. I'm always itching for a conversation. ♡


End file.
